$3 million CT campaign for PRH get major launch boost

SOS Medical Foundation

Peters Bros. Construction is donating $1.7 million to the South Okanagan Similkameen (SOS) Medical Foundation towards a second CT medical imaging unit at PRH. The new scanner will be located near the Emergency Department, now undergoing a major expansion.

Along with the CT itself, extensive building renovations are required which brings the total project cost to $5 million. The Okanagan Similkameen Regional Hospital District will provide $2 million with the SOS Medical Foundation raising the remainder.

The new CT scanner will be operational by the time the Emergency Department renovation is completed in early 2022. The CT was not part of the original plans for the $312-million hospital expansion – now into Phase 2.

Peters Bros. president Joe Cuzzocrea said the CT scanner provides another boost to the community’s healthcare. “It’s needed, the hospital is new. Let’s support it and get this new equipment for the hospital now,” he said.

Cuzzocrea hopes the company’s gift will encourage other businesses and individuals in the community to donate as well.

Peters Bros. has long been involved in supporting such community events as Peach Festival, Snowbirds aerial performances and providing free children’s tickets to Penticton Vees hockey games. The company’s late owner David Kampe was also a major supporter of PRH.

“Penticton is home and most everything we support is in this community,” Cuzzocrea said. “We do help other communities, but not like this one. This is home.”

Jeff Wojcik, section head for medical imaging at PRH, said not only will this latest model CT scanner provide higher quality images, but it will also reduce the heavy demand on the existing machine. The CT currently operates from 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and on-call overnight.

“We’re having trouble keeping up with volume,” Wojcik said. “We’re often trying to sandwich Emergency patients in between out-patients and oncology patients.”

Carey Bornn, Executive Director of the SOS Medical Foundation, applauds Peters Bros. generous support for the CT campaign and encourages the community to mirror their efforts.

“If nothing else, the Covid-19 outbreak has shown how important good health is to all of us,” he said. “Now as elective surgeries begin again, the addition of another CT scanner at PRH will prove even more valuable.”

Donations to the CT campaign can be made on the SOS Medical Foundation website, by phone 250-492-9027, or by mail to the SOS Medical Foundation, 550 Carmi Ave., Penticton BC. V2A 3G6.